The present invention relates to enhanced image capturing methods and apparatus and more particularly relates to the use of fiducial marks in image capturing devices to place fiducial marks in related images to improve and automate the stitching of related images together into a panoramic image.
Photography is a well known and widely used technique for capturing images for later appreciation and use. Digital photography—digital image capturing—is a recent development made possible by lower cost optical to electronic conversion devices such as relatively high resolution charge coupled device (CCD) arrays and similar mechanisms, more powerful and energy efficient microprocessors, and small and low cost memory devices. Advantages to the user of a digital camera, as it is commonly known, are the ability to capture, store, and immediately view a picture, the ability to correct defects in the stored picture either in situ or later using a computer system, the ability to erase and retake a similar picture, and the ease and ability to digitally transmit the picture to others. The immediacy and the correction ability has stimulated others to produce and offer application programs (for example Stitcher™ 3.0 offered by RealViz S.A.) that merge overlapping images together into a panoramic scene while correcting for lens distortion, color, and brightness across the panoramic scene—so long as the overlap is about 30% or more. Of course, panoramic scenes have also been created using digital movie techniques, but these scenes are viewed over time rather than as an instantaneous presentation.
Image stitching application programs rely upon the ability to locate the same objects appearing in overlapping scenes in order to provide alignment targets. Scenes that do not contain easily locatable objects in the overlap area are problematic for the stitching algorithms. Thus, a technology that simplifies the relationship between scenes without leaving undesirable vestiges in the final image would greatly improve the speed and quality of stitched images.